Kimberly Senior to Helm Theater Wit's THE NORTH PLAN

Chicago director Kimberly Senior will helm yet another production on a Chicago storefront stage with the local premiere of Jason Wells' apocalyptic drama The North Plan, Feb. 23 through Mar. 31, 2012 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Avenue.

Theater Wit is excited to present the first, full-fledged professional Chicago staging of The North Plan, a Quentin Tarantino-meets-All the President's Men apocalyptic drama, hailed as "the most promising and provocative of the stimulating, three-play First Look Repertory of New Work at the Steppenwolf Theatre Company" by the Chicago Tribune in 2010.

Newly cast for Theater Wit's production of Wells' wild tale of a wrongly imprisoned federal bureaucrat, desperate to escape to thwart an unspecified constitutional crisis, are Kate Buddeke (Tanya), Tom Hickey (Pitmen), Brian King (Lee), Lucy Sandy (Shonda), Kevin Stark (Carlton) and Will Zarn (Swenson). Hickey, King and Zarn were all in the original First Look production. Designers for The North Plan include Jack Magaw (set), Scott Pillsbury (lights), and Elizabeth Flauto (costumes).

Part political drama, part dark satire, The North Plan will be presented Feb.23 through Mar. 31, 2012 at Theater Wit, 1229 W. Belmont Avenue, Chicago. Press opening is Tuesday, Feb. 28, 7 pm. Regular performances times are Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Exceptions: There is no performance Thursday, Mar. 1. There is an added industry night Monday, Mar. 5 at 7 pm. Running time is 90 minutes with intermission.

Preview tickets to The North Plan are $18. Regular performances are $18-$36. Or, consider purchasing a Theater Wit Member Pass – Chicago's only Netflix-like membership program – which lets you enjoy as many plays as you want on any of Theater Wit's three stages, year round, for one low monthly fee of $36 ($30 for students). For tickets or to learn how to become a Theater Wit member, visit TheaterWit.org or call 773.975.8150.

More about The North Plan

What would ordinary Americans do if the U.S. government fell into tyranny? Quentin Tarantino meets All the President's Men in Jason Wells' The North Plan. In a small-town Missouri jailhouse in the not-too-distant future, a wrongly imprisoned federal bureaucrat is desperate to escape so he can thwart an unspecified constitutional crisis. To achieve this goal, he'll need a drunk, a laptop, and guns. Many guns.

Jason Well's first play, Men of Tortuga, had a critically-acclaimed debut at Steppenwolf Theatre's First Look Repertory of New Work, went on to a successful run at the Asolo Repertory Theatre in Sarasota, and has had numerous subsequent productions in the US and Ireland. Wells' second play, Perfect Mendacity, was a commission from Manhattan Theatre Club and the Sloan Foundation. Like Tortuga, it debuted at Steppenwolf and went on to its official world premiere at the Asolo. In 2010, it won the American Theatre Critics Association's M. Elizabeth Osborn Award, and was a finalist for the Steinberg/New Play Award. Both Men of Tortuga and Perfect Mendacity are published by Samuel French, Inc. The North Plan recently debuted at First Look, and receives its world premiere at Portland Center Stage in January of 2012. Wells is also an actor with numerous TV, film and stage credits.

Kimberly Senior's (director) most recent Chicago directing credit was Strawdog Theatre's Fall 2011 production of Harold Pinter's Old Times. In a follow-up column to his 3-1/2 star review, Chicago Tribune theater critic Chris Jones called Senior "a director who understands that small theaters with hungry actors offer a chance to exploit the twin powers of youth and intimacy" adding her Old Times was "a terrific piece of directing." Senior also directed Strawdog's The Conquest of the South Pole, Uncle Vanya, Cherry Orchard, Three Sisters, Fuddy Meers and Knives in Hens. Elsewhere in Chicago she directed Waiting for Lefty (American Blues Theater), The North Plan (Steppenwolf's 2010 First Look Series), Madagascar, The Overwhelming and The Busy World is Hushed (Next Theatre Company), Bad Dates and Mouse Cop (Fox Valley Repertory), Bug and The Pillowman (Redtwist Theatre), Thieves Like Us (The House Theatre), and All My Sons and Dolly West's Kitchen (TimeLine Theatre). Regional credits include Mauritius (Theatre Squared, Fayetteville, AR) and A Few Good Men (Peninsula Players). Soon after directing The North Plan at Theater Wit, Senior will return to Next Theatre to stage After the Revolution. Senior is an Artistic Associate at Next Theatre, Strawdog Theatre and Chicago Dramatists. She is on the faculty of Columbia College Chicago (2010 Excellence in Teaching Award Winner), DePaul University and University of Chicago. Senior is a proud member of SDC. For more information visit kimberlysenior.net

More about Theater Wit's 2011-2012 Season

Theater Wit's 2011-2012 season kicks off November 25 through December 31 with the return of its annual holiday classic The Santaland Diaries, based on David Sedaris's true, hilarious holiday tale, featuring a newly-enhanced set and once again starring Mitchell Fain who always plays to rave reviews and sold out houses.

Following The North Plan, the Chicago premiere of Kim Rosenstock's Tiger's Be Still, a savagely funny dark comedy about a young woman who stops being a total disaster and gets her life back on track, directed by Jeremy Wechsler, completes Theater Wit's 2011-12 season, April 24-May 27, 2012.

In addition to presenting its own three play season in 2011-2012, Theater Wit is completely booked through June 2012 with an incredibly eclectic slate of new plays and musicals by Chicago's most popular and accomplished off-Loop theater companies. Resident companies presenting their full seasons at Theater Wit in 2011-2012 are Bohemian Theatre Ensemble, New Millennium Theatre Company and Stage Left Theatre. Visiting companies this season include BONEdance, Griffin Theatre, Porchlight Music Theatre, Route 66 Theatre Company, Salomee Speelt, Sideshow Theatre, Strange Tree Theatre Group and TimeLine Theatre Company.

To encourage cross-pollination among Theater Wit productions and those presented by its resident and visiting companies, Theater Wit recently introduced Chicago's first Netflix-like membership program at a live theater multiplex. With a Theater Wit Membership, you can see as many plays as you want at Theater Wit, year round, for one low monthly fee of $36 ($30 for students). Using your unique member ID, you can reserve a seat at any production in the facility, either in advance or just drop by on impulse. Attend as many different shows as you want each month. Come once, twice or five times a week at no additional charge. Come back to the same production for free as many times as you wish, based on day of availability. And get this: members of Theater Wit are also welcome to bring a friend twice a season for free.

In addition to its new "all the theater you can eat" Membership Program, Theater Wit also offers a Flex Pass to similarly encourage cross pollination between its own productions, and those presented by its resident and guest companies. A Theater Wit Flex Pass offers 10 admissions for $200 to literally anything presented in the building, a savings of up to 40%. To purchase a Membership Program, Flex Pass, single tickets or for information about all 2011-2012 productions at Theater Wit, call 773.975.8150 or visit TheaterWit.org.

About Theater Wit

"A thrilling addition to Chicago's roster of theaters" (Chicago Tribune) and "a terrific place to see a show" (New City), the new Theater Wit is entering its second season in its newly renovated home at 1229 W. Belmont Avenue in Chicago.

Theater Wit inaugurated its brand new, $1.3 million venue in the former home of the Bailiwick Arts Centre in June 2010. The new Theater Wit boasts three intimate 99-seat performance spaces – the only theater in Chicago with such a configuration – plus a new box office, administrative offices, a beer, wine, spirits and coffee bar, and a cool, casual lobby.

Founded in 2004, Theater Wit's mission is to explore contemporary issues with wit and wisdom through new works and Chicago premieres. For complete information, visit TheaterWit.org.

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